Wireless Charging Infrastructure for Milton Keynes

"This Feasibility Study will explore the use of wireless charging technology to support the introduction of electric public service vehicles in Milton Keynes. It will examine the culture of organisations which operate in the public service sectors, and the technical options which exist. Based on the findings, the study will develop application-specific business cases to support the roll-out of a city-wide wireless charging infrastructure. These applications will focus particularly on taxi/private-hire and on-demand bus services, although other applications such as light freight, grocery deliveries, healthcare, and waste collection services will also be considered.

A distinctive feature of the study will be an in-depth socio-technical examination of the cultures and business practices of the organisations which operate in the chosen areas of application. This will respond to the fact that the take-up of electric vehicles by the targetted service providers, to date, has been low and changing this situation will require a deep understanding of culture and business practice in addition to an understanding of the available technology.

The programme will embrace two key areas of technical innovation. First, the adoption of a novel wireless charging device will be explored. This device is currently being developed at the University of Warwick using the latest power electronics technologies to deliver very compact, high power, units which are ideal for small and medium-size vehicles. The second area of innovation will explore the potential for coupling wireless chargers to existing on-street cable-chargers. If successful, this approach will allow many more chargers to be installed across the city without requiring an equal number of new connections from the local electricity network operator."